NHPR Books

At the 2025 New Hampshire Book Festival, NHPR’s Taylor Quimby hosted the Children’s Keynote featuring Tui Sutherland—the beloved author of the New York Times and USA Today bestselling Wings of Fire series, the Menagerie trilogy, and the Pet Trouble series. This conversation was recorded before a live audience on Fri. October 3, 2025.

At the 2025 New Hampshire Book Festival, Check This Out host Rachel Barenbaum hosted "Unexpected Journeys," a panel featuring authors Rob Franklin, Tim Weed, and Annie Hartnett. Together, they discussed the literal and emotional voyages in their latest novels: Franklin’s Great Black Hope, Weed’s The Afterlife Project, and Hartnett’s The Road to Tender Hearts. From fleeing the aftermath of a "very bad night" to crossing futuristic oceans or chasing old flames, these stories redefine the quest. This live session was recorded at Concord’s Capitol Center for the Arts.

NHPR, in collaboration with The Music Hall and MacDowell, presents Across the Table Conversations - a multidisciplinary talks series spotlighting emerging and established MacDowell Fellows in public conversation. Moderated by NHPR President and CEO Jim Schachter, this first event featured celebrated author Mary Gaitskill in conversation with writer and visual artist August Lamm. Mary Gaitskill is known for her searing, emotionally complex novels, essays, and short stories, including This is Pleasure, Veronica, and Bad Behavior, which included the short story “Secretary,” and has been featured in The New Yorker, Harper’s, and Esquire. August Lamm is a writer and visual artist whose essays have appeared in The Guardian and The New York Times, and is known for her perspectives on low-tech living. This conversation was recorded at the Music Hall Lounge on September 9th, 2025 during the Seacoast Litfest.

Patricia Cornwell is a #1 New York Times bestselling author and widely considered one of the world’s top crime writers. The 29th novel in her Scarpetta series, Sharp Force follows Dr. Kay Scarpetta as she tracks a serial killer through Northern Virginia. His pattern is to stalk victims using sophisticated technology that allows him to invade their homes and watch their every move. They awaken to a ghost-like hologram before being murdered in their beds. This conversation was recorded before a live audience at the Music Hall in Portsmouth on October 8, 2025.

Authors on Main brings world class authors to Concord, N.H, and in this episode, Laura Knoy comes to the BNH Stage to sit down with Rick Ganley and discuss her debut novel The Shopkeeper of Alsace.

Authors on Main brings world class authors to Concord, N.H, and in this episode, best-selling author Jodi Picoult comes to the Capital Center for the Arts for a literary discussion of her new novel "By Any Other Name."

Authors on Main brings world class authors to Concord, New Hampshire, and in this episode, best-selling author Julia Alvarez comes to the Bank of New Hampshire stage for a literary discussion of her new novel, "The Cemetery of Untold Stories."

Authors on Main brings world class authors to Concord, New Hampshire, and in this episode, best-selling author Chris Bohjalian comes to the Bank of New Hampshire stage for a literary discussion of his new novel, "The Princess of Las Vegas."

Michael Cunningham joined us at Bank of New Hampshire Stage in Concord, NH to discuss his latest novel, Day. He was interviewed by Civics 101 host Hannah McCarthy.

Ann Patchett joined us at Bank of New Hampshire Stage in Concord, NH to discuss her latest novel, Tom Lake. She was interviewed by local author Katrina Kenison and NHPR's Morning Edition host Rick Ganley.

Join us for recommendations from literary fiction to romance; new favorites that flew under the radar but are worth seeking out.

A debut novel set in 13th century Bruges, a young woman’s exploration of faith, agency and love, with surprising resonance for today.

We follow one young woman's obsessive quest to become the first Cherokee astronaut in this debut novel about family, ambition and belonging.

"Brimstone," the sequel to the worldwide phenomenon "Quicksilver," returns readers to the realm of Yvelia with with more drama, higher stakes, and deadly consequences.

The story of a runaway mother’s ten days of freedom—and the pain, desire, longing, and wonder we find on the messy road to enlightenment.

The title sounds like the beginning of a joke, but it’s the end of a marriage and a cancer diagnosis, and a funny and hopeful debut novel by Katie Yee. Plus, native American archeologist Syd Walker is back in Vanessa Lillie’s “The Bone Thief.”

A complex meditation on Black history set in West Tennessee, a family saga where the Devil plays a leading role.

A Black Southern family drama unfolds as the sins of a favorite son rock a small Mississippi town.

A debut novel that takes us to a small village in 18th-century England where neighbors are convinced five sisters are turning into dogs.

Dan Brown joined us in September 2025 at The Music Hall in Portsmouth to discuss his latest, The Secret of Secrets.